Chapter 2: Take off your mask (2)
“Um…”
“Yes?”
“I need to assist another hunter right now…”
“What are you talking about?”
Minhoo Seol furrowed his brow.
Seeing this, Ria Moa’s cheeks flushed without her realizing it.
“Oh, uh! I mean… there’s another hunter with a reservation! But… I’ll just take care of you first!”
“Is that okay?”
“It’s fine! Cough!”
Minhoo was dumbfounded, watching Ria Moa stammer and even bite her tongue.
What’s wrong with her all of a sudden? Is she an idiot?
Her attitude was completely different from before.
Gone was the usual Ria Moa who looked at him like he was filth.
‘Oh, right. I’m not wearing the mask anymore.’
It didn’t take long for Minhoo to understand.
She must be the type to get flustered around men, he thought.
To think she’s acting this giddy over a face that’s just slightly above average.
He felt a bit annoyed that she hadn’t even considered him a man before, but he let it slide.
After all, even he had cursed at his own reflection when he wore that mask.
“But I made a reservation for 11:30 too.”
“Huh?”
“You didn’t recognize me because of the mask, did you? You should’ve known from my build and voice.”
“What?”
Ria Moa wore a blank expression.
Now that she thought about it, his build and voice were familiar.
After a moment of pondering, she gasped, “Ah!” and shot up from her seat.
With a trembling voice, she asked,
“Are… are you… Hunter Minhoo Seol…?”
“Yes. This isn’t a double booking, is it?”
“…”
“Hey?”
Ria Moa, trembling like a leaf, forced herself to calm down and sat back down.
‘She’s a fox beastkin, right? Pink hair, so maybe a pink fox?’
It was the first time he’d seen her tail, since she was always seated.
While Minhoo was lost in pointless thoughts, Ria Moa spoke again, more composed.
“Yes, yes! My mistake! I’ll assist you, Hunter Minhoo Seol!”
She seemed oddly nervous, but Minhoo didn’t care and continued.
“You know I’m looking for a new party, right?”
“Yes, sir!”
“I’d like an all C-rank party this time. Is that possible?”
“Yes, sir!”
Her responses are so dumb, Minhoo thought.
Ria Moa frantically typed on her keyboard, scanning the monitor.
An awkward silence hung between them.
About five minutes later, Ria Moa spoke first.
“There are currently three parties above C-rank looking for members! You prefer all-female parties, right, Hunter Minhoo? In that case, one party…”
“No. Gender doesn’t matter.”
“Huh?”
“I said it doesn’t matter.”
“Oh, okay! Then…”
Now that he wasn’t wearing the mask, he wouldn’t be expelled for baseless reasons, so there was no need to insist on all-female parties.
Soon, Ria Moa handed him three printed sheets.
“Here they are! All three are looking for damage dealers! I excluded the ones seeking only ranged dealers!”
Minhoo silently took the papers and reviewed the parties.
‘Hmm…’
Party Name: Choco Gratin
Members:
C. Gariaros
C. Titanomo
C. Chen
Contract Period: 1 year.
‘A one-year contract… too long.’
Party Name: Ice Flame
Members:
B. Seolhwa
C. Jace
C. Yura
Contract Period: 1 month.
Party Name: Leon Cross
Members:
C. Popo
C. Quin
C. Tente
Contract Period: 6 months.
Minhoo closely examined the remaining two sheets.
‘One month is too short, and six months is cutting it close.’
Exactly six months from now, the Hunter Academy entrance ceremony would take place.
He’d already scored well on the entrance exam three months ago, so his acceptance was all but guaranteed.
The results announcement was a formality.
‘Well, I’m not desperate for money. I’ve got some living expenses left, and rent’s paid in advance, so it’s fine.’
“I’ll go with this party.”
“Oh, Ice Flame? Got it!”
Ria Moa took the papers back, worked on the computer, and spoke to Minhoo.
“This party left the temporary contract with the Association. You probably won’t meet them directly. Is that okay? Gasp!”
“It’s fine. I just need to sign the contract, right?”
“Yes! I’ll grab the contract…”
“No, never mind. I’ll leave it to the Association too.”
“Huh?”
“Too much hassle. Just handle it. I’m leaving.”
With that, Minhoo secured another new party.
Not for contract termination fees this time, but purely for gate missions.
Ria Moa stared blankly at Minhoo’s back as he left after finishing his business.
Normally, she’d have looked away in disgust, but today was different.
‘Is that… really Hunter Minhoo Seol?’
Once he was out of sight, Ria Moa tried to cool her flushed face.
Despite having plenty of work, she had no intention of doing it.
Her eyes glazed over as she pictured Minhoo’s face from their conversation.
Heh
She didn’t even realize she was drooling.
‘His face is perfect, and was his body always that good? How did I not notice? His proportions alone… No, I can’t even imagine his face without seeing it again.’
Beaming, Ria Moa suddenly recalled her past mistreatment of him.
‘Oh…’
The more she dwelled on it, the more her expression twisted.
‘Stupid b*tch! I should’ve been nicer! Argh! He probably thinks poorly of me now. What do I do…’
Her regret lasted only a few seconds.
She was overly optimistic—or, bluntly, just a clueless airhead.
‘If I’m nice from now on, he’ll forgive me, right? The past is the past!’
Ria Moa smiled again, lost in her delusional optimism.
Convinced she’d found her “prince,” she grabbed her phone and made a call.
The recipient was the new receptionist hired by the Association.
Ring ring
Ring ring
[Customer is not answering…]
“Ugh, is she busy? One more time…”
Ring ring
[Customer is not answering…]
“Why! Why! Why won’t she pick up, that b*tch!”
Chewing her nails, Ria Moa kicked her chair and stood up.
Two days after Minhoo signed a temporary contract with Ice Flame through the Association.
At the entrance of a C-rank gate.
Two women and one man were chatting.
“The hunter we signed for this temp contract is named Minhoo Seol, right? Unusual name.”
A woman with sleek silver hair down to her waist, exuding charm.
Seolhwa, the leader of the Ice Flame party, spoke while tapping her phone screen.
“Yeah. No photo, though.”
“They say he’s grotesque-looking. The only hunter without a photo posted at the Association.”
Yura and Jace, the party members, responded.
Jace added,
“Rumor has it his face is so bad that posting a photo would make it impossible to find a party, so the Association left it off out of courtesy.”
“Really?”
Seolhwa’s eyes sparkled with curiosity.
Why? What kind of face would make it so hard to join a party that the Association would step in?
As they discussed this, at exactly 13:00, the designated meeting time, a man appeared before them.
“I’m Minhoo Seol, here for the temporary contract. Nice to meet you.”
“Oh, you’re here. We were too busy to meet during the contract signing. Sorry for going through the Association…”
Seolhwa, turning at the sound of his voice, froze the moment she saw Minhoo’s face.
Her words caught in her throat.
“…”
“…”
“…”
The other party members were the same.
Minhoo tilted his head, breaking the silence.
“Is there something on my face?”
Snapping out of it, Seolhwa coughed awkwardly.
“N-no! I just zoned out for a second. Anyway, sorry for handling the contract through the Association. We were swamped…”
“It’s fine.”
Seolhwa, stealing glances without meeting his eyes, asked,
“By the way… are you… an incubus?”
Silence fell again.
Minhoo scratched his head, thinking to himself,
‘What the hell is she talking about? Is she crazy?’